More Than Anything
by Kita-hime
Summary: The problem with loving a wild thing is you're always left watching the door. Cloud never stuck around for long, and when he did, he was never all there. How long has Tifa had to lose out to a memory? Hopefully that ends now. I'm old school and will call this a lime.
Tifa closed the front door, locking it with a soft 'click'. She took a deep breath and let it out in a rush. The end of another day.

Cloud stepped up behind her. "Is there anything I can do?" He looked around the bar. There were empty glasses here and there and a sink full in the back. She turned around, almost startled.

"You're still here…" she mumbled, her eyes downcast. Cloud followed her gaze, noting the scuffs and dents in the floor. He said something that might have been an apology. She risked a glance up at him. He was so tall, she was able to keep her eyes forward, focusing on his chin to avoid looking at his eyes. "No. It's just that…I'm so used to you leaving when I least expect it. Took me by surprise."

He shrugged and turned away, heading to the back of the bar where the dishes were waiting. He pushed up his sleeves saying, "I can go. No big deal, but I can at least make myself useful in the meantime." Tifa watched his retreating back long after he vanished behind the doorway that led into the back room. The sounds of water running and cups clinking together was the only sound for a while.

Tifa deliberately walked toward the sound, thinking very hard to herself. Was it really worth getting attached? No matter how long he stayed, he always left again. No rhyme, no reason. She should have hated him for it, for making her spend so much time waiting for him, but…

She stood in the doorway, watching him scrub out the dishes. He was very methodical, never speeding through anything. Cloud was never in a hurry. Tifa bit her lip. The longer he stood there just _existing_ near her sent her mind in circles. Her fists clenched at her sides, and she squeezed her eyes closed, suddenly not wanting to look at him anymore. She turned on her heel and started to walk out, when the sharp 'clink' of glass on glass made her turn back around.

"Something on your mind?" Cloud let go of the glass he had firmly set down in the drying rack. He turned, crossing his arms and leaning up against the sink, water still beaded on his bare forearms. "It's not like you to be troubled by your thoughts." His piercing blue eyes saw everything. Tifa swallowed, and looked up at him, solidifying her resolve. "You could stay you know…I really appreciate having you here…we all do." Cloud looked away before she was finished speaking. Tifa had enough, her calm façade withered away and she took three quick steps towards him. "Cloud, _please_ …stay here. I know you care about us. Staying away…it's not going to change anything-" all her words came out in a flurry, but she stopped when Cloud shook his head, pushing away from the sink.

"I have to go" he walked right past her into the front room and out the door, locking it behind him. Tifa stood there in his wake, the silence that followed ringing in her ears. It didn't stop for a long time. That's the trouble with loving a wild thing, she told herself. You're always left watching the door.

Dusk had fallen, Tifa went upstairs to her room, kicking off her shoes and taking off her vest as she went. She gripped the well-worn leather in her fist, staring down at it and remembering the battles against Shinra and all the friends they would never see again. The memories weighed her down. _Is this how Cloud feels?_ She wondered, balling the vest in her hands. _Does he really think every step was his fault? His weakness?_ An overwhelming sadness overcame her as she threw the vest into a corner by the window. She wondered what it must feel like to carry that weight. She wondered if she could ever tell him-

A movement by the window caught her eye.

"Again…is something on your mind?"

Tifa jumped, taking a few steps back. He had been standing looking out the window with his back to her, but he turned around when he spoke. For a moment they just looked at each other, than Cloud took a few steps forward to sit on the edge of the bed closest to her. He looked at the wall behind her, his hands folded and elbows resting on parted knees. "You seem like you want to say something to me, so..." Tifa wrinkled her eyebrows, tilting her head as she listened to what he had to say. "I know what you want from me…but...I can't. Not now. Not after Aerith-" Tifa cut him off by walking toward him. She was not going to listen to this. Not again. Not after everything…

How long? How long was she to lose out to a memory?

She reached her arms to him when she got close enough, but just as fast Cloud grabbed her wrists, holding her at a distance with concern in his eyes. "Tifa…" he said her name so softly, but with the resignation she had grown to accept. Shaking her head, she stepped closer into the space between his knees. Even sitting, he was nearly eye level to her. His grip on her wrists tightened as she brought her face closer, to the point right before their foreheads touched. Cloud looked at her eyes then, meeting Tifa's gaze for the first time that day. This was the one who welcomed him back countless times, who threw him to meet his greatest enemy. The one who punched Bahamut out of the sky. He knew that she was the strongest woman he had ever met.

But when he looked into her eyes, that's not what he saw. Instead, he saw longing, a raw open vulnerability. That was what did it. Anything to take that look off her face. He stood up, towering over her and with one hand he cupped the side of her face and kissed her. Tifa made a sound. Whether it was from surprise or lust he would never know, but her response was immediate. She put her hands on his shoulders and kissed him harder, sliding her hands up his shoulders onto his neck. Cloud gently stroked the side of her face and put the other hand on her waist, pulling him into her. Tifa sighed, nervously kissing one of his lips and then the other, pulling gingerly.

Breathing hard, Cloud slid his hands underneath Tifa's suspenders and carefully slid them down her arms. She lifted them out the rest of the way and went to unzip his shirt. He grabbed her hand and pulled back. "Tifa…you know I-"

"Cloud please" she replied, breathlessly grabbing his hand and taking the zipper all the way down. He paused at the sudden warmth of her hands as they slid under his shirt, slowly caressing his stomach, his chest, his shoulders. She slid the shirt down his shoulders, deliberately running her hands over the lean muscles in his arms. He was so thin, the muscle fibers clearly visible under the skin. She let the shirt fall behind him onto the floor to lovingly work her hands back up his arms to rest on his chest. He closed his eyes against the unfamiliar sensation of her touch. Tifa's hands were so gentle and so soft despite the years of fighting. He wondered idly if that's why she always wore those gloves.

In a single motion Tifa had reached down to pull her own shirt over her head and add it to his. For one moment Cloud considered averting his eyes, but Tifa put both hands on his chest and firmly sat him back down on the bed, putting one knee on each side of his hips. She gingerly brought his face to hers and kissed his forehead. Cloud closed his eyes and let out a heartened sigh, wrapping his arms around her waist. He idly stroked her side with his thumb as she rested her chin on his forehead. For a moment they just sat there completely absorbed in the moment. Cloud knew how much she wanted him, hell she had wanted him for years, but this - being this close to her, basking in her aura - he didn't know what to do.

"Please…" she said again, anxiously bending down to touch her forehead to his. She opened her mouth, but only a small sound escaped. All the things she wanted to say, to tell him, ask him, plead to him, died in her throat. The smell of her desire was thick in the air. Cloud brought his face up to the base of her throat and ran his hands up her back. Slowly - and as gently as he could - he kissed across her collarbones and down the center of her chest, sliding her bra down all the while. She dropped it to the floor and brought her hands back up to his head, burying her hands in his hair. His hot breath on her chest made her quiver.

Cloud tightened his arms around Tifa's waist to trade places with her. She gave a surprised gasp at the sudden movement and looked up at him standing over her. He braced his arms on either side of her, forcing her to lean backward. He sighed forcefully and shook his head to clear it. "We should stop. I don't want to lead you on…Tifa." She silenced him with another fervent kiss. He moaned, heatedly pulling her closer to him.

"You're not leading me on, it's ok" she reassured him breathlessly. She knew better than to expect anything past the moment with someone like Cloud. She took his hand and fiercely brought it to her chest. He gripped her breast, running his thumb repeatedly over the peak. She took short shallow breaths with each motion and leaned her body back the rest of the way as his mouth sensuously closed over her breast. "Cloud…" she puffed, desperately dragging her hands up his back.

He went back to her neck, biting at her smooth skin as his hands slid down her torso, stopping at the hem of her shorts.

He exhaled heavily onto her skin, sitting up again. "I'm not ready for a relationship-" he started to say, but stopped when he felt Tifa suddenly grab the front of his pants, fingers on the inside of his waistline rending them open with a sharp 'snap'.

Tifa looked at him with piercing eyes. "Just… _fuck me_."

He hesitated, giving her a look of surprise. There are only so many times a man can stop himself, and after that moment, Cloud was definitely a man.

He grabbed both sides of her shorts and pulled them from hip to ankle fast enough to earn another gasp. He flung them recklessly across the bedroom. Grasping his arms under her waist, he sat her up again. Her eyes were full of endearment and somehow determination. Never taking his eyes off hers he undid his pants the rest of the way and lightly kicked them away.

Tifa's heart was hammering in its cage as he brought himself close to her. She desperately watched his eyes as he gently brushed against her center.

"Do you want me?" he spoke softly.

Tifa grazed her fingertips down his bare hips and took him in her hand. "More than anything" she breathed and guided him into her.


End file.
